[RNLD List] Words

Thu Apr 8 10:14:25 UTC 2021

Hello

We are just working on a unit around colours at the moment for Yaama
Gamilaraay! early childhood project, with the attached posters which include
the origins of the words. The new words we developed for the project a
couple of years ago were for ‘purple’ and ‘orange’, based on plants and
using reduplication.

Hilary

From: Resource-network-linguistic-diversity
<resource-network-linguistic-diversity-bounces at listserv.linguistlist.org> On
Behalf Of Maia Ponsonnet
Sent: Thursday, 8 April 2021 9:36 PM
To: Ivan Kapitonov <moving.alpha at gmail.com>; Harley Dunolly-Lee
<harley.dunollylee123 at gmail.com>
Cc: resource-network-linguistic-diversity at listserv.linguistlist.org
Subject: Re: [RNLD List] Words

Hello, I wonder if "medium" could be rendered by adding a word meaning "a
little bit" to the adjective, so "a little bit big"?

Kind regards, Maïa 

Dr Maïa Ponsonnet
Senior Lecturer, Discipline of Linguistics

Graduate Research Coordinator, School of Social Sciences

Building M257, Room 2.36

Faculty of Arts, Business, Law and Education
The University of Western Australia
35 Stirling Hwy, Perth, WA (6009), Australia
P.  +61 (0) 8 6488 2870 - M.  +61 (0) 468 571 030

  _____  

From: Resource-network-linguistic-diversity
<resource-network-linguistic-diversity-bounces at listserv.linguistlist.org
<mailto:resource-network-linguistic-diversity-bounces at listserv.linguistlist.
org> > on behalf of Ivan Kapitonov <moving.alpha at gmail.com
<mailto:moving.alpha at gmail.com> >
Sent: Thursday, 8 April 2021 5:25 PM
To: Harley Dunolly-Lee <harley.dunollylee123 at gmail.com
<mailto:harley.dunollylee123 at gmail.com> >
Cc: resource-network-linguistic-diversity at listserv.linguistlist.org
<mailto:resource-network-linguistic-diversity at listserv.linguistlist.org>
<resource-network-linguistic-diversity at listserv.linguistlist.org
<mailto:resource-network-linguistic-diversity at listserv.linguistlist.org> >
Subject: Re: [RNLD List] Words 

Hi Harley,

I suppose the green/plant overlap shouldn't be too bad -- as long as malak
can be used at all for something non-plant. If you decide that you need the
equivalent for 'blue' in the end, one possibility is to use things that have
the colour: e.g. 'sky', or 'river'/'sea', or 'cloud', whatever is most
appropriate. I learned this from Kunbarlang, spoken in Arnhem Land. There
aren't many words specific to colours at all, but they might say yimarne
kuyunu 'like cloud' for 'blue', or yimarne mulubin 'like blood' for 'red'.

As for mid-size, that's very tricky, isn't it. The "small-small" as John
pointed out is an option, but watch out -- in some languages that might mean
'very small' rather than 'mid-size', so you might want to look for other
such reduplicated words in Dja Dja Wurrung to see which way they tend to be
used. I can think of two further alternatives: either to add a word like 'a
bit' or 'half-way', or to add a word like 'very' or 'really'. Thus, you'd
have 'small' -- 'half-big' -- 'big', or 'not hard' -- 'hard' -- 'very hard',
or similar. I think at least in Woiwurrung there is a word for 'half'
(marru?).

The 'flood' idea is very cool I think, but I don't know what your target is
about (the pass--middle--intensive).

Best,

Vanya

On Thu, Apr 8, 2021 at 2:12 AM Harley Dunolly-Lee
<harley.dunollylee123 at gmail.com <mailto:harley.dunollylee123 at gmail.com> >
wrote:

Hello RNLDs  

I am emailing to ask the following questions. At Dja Dja Wurrung, we are
beggining to name things in our data bases such as mapping, tools,
administration etc. One of things we wanting to name are the management
zones within the Parks areas on Country. 

The following words are to be translated into Dja Dja Wurrung. 

Easy, moderate, hard 

Small, medium, big

Red, blue, green 

Pass, middile (in-between), intensive

Good, bad 

I did some research and some of these words I have found words. I had to
search into the English synonyms to get a better idea. However, some of
these words overlap each other. Also, blue and green are the same colour in
Dja Dja Wurrung and related languages. I do not want to colonized this way
of seeing colours either. 

There is word for green, malak but its also the word for green plants like
milk thistles or greens. Lol so maybe not the 'green' that was meant to be. 

I had a look at the list, and related languages, but I am finding
difficulties to express these words. The data is limited and we gave no
fluent speakers. 

Word for intensive, I have chosen wola-wola 'flood', wherw wola 'rain',
because floods can be intensive. 

What do the languages you know, speak or work with get around these sorts of
things ? 

_______________________________________________
Resource-network-linguistic-diversity mailing list
Resource-network-linguistic-diversity at listserv.linguistlist.org
<mailto:Resource-network-linguistic-diversity at listserv.linguistlist.org> 
http://listserv.linguistlist.org/mailman/listinfo/resource-network-linguisti
c-diversity
<https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Flistserv.l
inguistlist.org%2Fmailman%2Flistinfo%2Fresource-network-linguistic-diversity
&data=04%7C01%7Cmaia.ponsonnet%40uwa.edu.au%7C8232d3c4715b46beaa1a08d8fa7056
79%7C05894af0cb2846d8871674cdb46e2226%7C1%7C1%7C637534707690719175%7CUnknown
%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6M
n0%3D%7C3000&sdata=%2Fe%2FAd%2FHlBq7lJ%2Fvp68ta%2BnD6BfNatOThbYSVXkIHsVE%3D&
reserved=0> 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/resource-network-linguistic-diversity/attachments/20210408/83ab6975/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: Colour posters_22MARCH21.pdf
Type: application/pdf
Size: 7267046 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/resource-network-linguistic-diversity/attachments/20210408/83ab6975/attachment.pdf>